• About
  • Z-Blog Award
  • My Life with an Enigma
  • Index – My Life with an Enigma
  • cancer
  • Photography
  • Everything else
  • Uncategorized

Rangewriter

~ What Comes Next?

Rangewriter

Category Archives: Everything else

Staying relevant

30 Friday Dec 2022

Posted by rangewriter in Everything else

≈ 13 Comments

Tags

Diversity, environment, High Country News, history, Literature, news, Staying Relevant, Sy Safransky, The Sun Magazine, the west, Tom Bell

I’m that linear person who reads publications cover to cover. It’s a slow process, therefore I subscribe to only two monthlies: The Sun Magazine, and High Country News. The first nurtures my soul and inspires me to think deeply. The second informs me about the land I live on, the peoples, plants, and animals with whom I share this magnificent land, and the intricate interrelationships between us all.

Both publications sprang from humble beginnings. The Sun, an entirely ad-free literary journal, first hit street corners in 1974 with editor Sy Safransky barely able to drum up the courage to charge 25₵ for his manually typed, Xeroxed copies. The magazine survives today with well over 60,000 subscriptions and a stalwart eye for thoughtful interviews, poetry, short fiction, provocative black and white photography, and the beloved “Readers Write.” The editorial board deploys unmatched sensitivity. Even a letter to the editor doesn’t get published without author approval of editorial revisions.

High Country News (HCN) began in 1969 when WWII veteran, Tom Bell, published Camping News Weekly out of Lander, Wyoming. Initially geared toward anglers and hunters, Bell was driven to expand into environmental issues that he saw as a threat to the West he so loved. The early years were tough, and the magazine, later dubbed High Country News, struggled to make ends meet. By 1983, Bell was tired and overwhelmed with the task of keeping the paper going. Transplanted New Yorkers, Ed and Besty Martson, took the helm and moved the paper to Paonia, Colorado, where it flourished.

HCN has evolved rapidly during the past decade. Once, a mostly black and white, semi-monthly, printed on newsprint, it has blossomed into a glossy monthly with color photography and stunning original art. But more importantly, beyond the outer beauty, this publication has expanded its scope and reportage by mining once-unheard voices from the west. In the past year, the business office has decentralized from Paonia, Colorado, utilizing digital tools that make instant communication and document collaboration possible across vast distances.

Administrative, editorial, and reporting work is spread out from coast to coast. Dedicated reporters and content creators are young, fierce, and eager to dig into the cultural and socio-economic aspects of the western political landscape.

Some readers have not appreciated the changes. I freely admit that some of the stories push my buttons, challenge my assumptions, and simply don’t interest me. I don’t like graphic novels or content. I was never a comic strip reader, and that style just doesn’t work for me. But how many young readers might be attracted to a graphic news story? And I confess that every now and then I catch my eyes rolling at the asomatous musings of a 20 or 30-something trans writer. But THOSE are my teachable moments! When my eyes are rolling, my judgement is impaired. I come at text from my highly privileged white background. These voices deserve to be heard as much as my voice does. And that it has taken this long for them to emerge is only proof of how narrow the playing field has been until recently.

Just look at those bright young faces in the Featured Contributors column. They span myriad shades, ethnicities, and gender personas. And each of them is talented beyond belief. My mission is to keep learning. And these two publications help me on the journey.

The magic of Christmas

20 Tuesday Dec 2022

Posted by rangewriter in Everything else

≈ 14 Comments

Tags

Christmas, creativity, friendship, memories, nostalgia

Christmas, despite its over-commercialization, has always been my favorite holiday. My mother went out of her way to make it special. There were always many small, but thoughtfully chosen and individually wrapped gifts under our Christmas tree. Mom couldn’t bear to see trees die needlessly for holiday decoration; therefore we always had an artificial tree which could be carefully stowed away each January and reused the following December. And she filled every inch of the house with old, often crumbling, yet always special ornaments and decorations handed down from her mother.

When I was about 14, my new stepfather brought in small trees for me and his daughter, my new sister, to put up in our rooms. This was a huge extravagance, but a wise ploy on his part. He could have written a book about how to endear oneself to a step-child.

I have put up a Christmas tree every single year since then, even the occasional years when I would be out of town during the holiday. Like my mother, if left up to me, I use (and reuse) an artificial tree. And I put old and often crumbling ornaments on the tree and around the house. These items remain special because they see so little daylight. Warm memories spring up as I free them from their layers of tissue paper. Nostalgic thoughts of people who’ve been part of my life—some of whom are no longer present—hover. Putting Christmas away always feels just a tad sad, like watching a kaleidoscope of leaves drift to the ground, leaving trees to face winter starkly naked.

Among my treasures is a collection of ornaments that has outgrown its storage box several times. One of my friends is both craftily handy and artistically talented. Each of her gifts through the years is adorned with a hand-crafted ornament. We’ve exchanged many gifts. Placing these ornaments on the tree is like looking through a stack of photo albums. Her creativity has marked our passage of time and our friendship. It also marks her artistic journey through many styles and creative pursuits through the years.

I gaze at the ornament that proudly commemorates 1980. It is not the oldest of the collection, but oh my, that was so long ago. Cris and I were both so young. And neither of us was aware of just how young we were or how long and deep our friendship would grow.

I hope you all have a love-filled and stress-free holiday filled with pleasant old memories and perhaps making new memories to savor in future years.

Gallery

Would you like to live forever?

03 Saturday Dec 2022

Posted by rangewriter in Everything else, Travel & Adventure

≈ 25 Comments

Tags

beliefs, Circle of life, philosophy, Righteousness

This gallery contains 1 photo.

In early November, this neighborly letter arrived in my mailbox. I presumed it was another effort to separate me from …

Continue reading →

Gallery

Happy 109th Birthday Mama,

20 Sunday Nov 2022

Posted by rangewriter in cancer, Everything else, My Life with an Enigma

≈ 29 Comments

Tags

Arthur Frank, cancer, Genomics, illness naratives, Jay Baruch, Oncotype, Quest stories

I’m glad you’re not here to watch what’s on my horizon. You would probably disapprove of my decisions. Although, you …

Continue reading →

Gallery

No one wins when death hangs in the balance

15 Saturday Oct 2022

Posted by rangewriter in Everything else

≈ 17 Comments

Tags

Crime & Punishment, death penalty, grief, Justice, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, mass murder

This gallery contains 1 photo.

My heart bleeds for the community of grievers left in the wake of the Parkland mass murder. (And for those …

Continue reading →

← Older posts

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 5,104 other subscribers

That's me!

Some of my favorite blogs:

  • Alles ist gut Great opportunity to practice reading German while enjoying photos, recipes, and adventure essays from across the pond.
  • Alli Farkas Artist Adventures A little chronicle of an artist's meanderings on the road to sustainability in an artistic life (read: make some money from art!)
  • Butterfly Sand curiosity run amok …
  • Catterel Catherine’s blog is as esoteric as mine, filled with poetry, photos, and general ruminations.
  • Cinemuse Some of the best film reviews I’ve read. My go-to site when considering my entertainment options.
  • Craig Pindell Fine Art Photography
  • Denise Bush Photography Fine arts photography with a deep connection to the landscape
  • Directionally Impaired Journey
  • Explorumentary A sublime melding of the eye of a scientist with the visual and verbal poetry of an artist. Sue shares her hikes into some of the most remote regions of our glorious country.
  • In Flow Creativity is what this one is all about. Great photography, tips, and inspiration.
  • Jane's Heartsong Your heart will sing right along with Jane’s when you see how she captures the essence of life in the world outside her door.
  • Musings of an old fart Independent and scrupulously-researched perspectives on current events
  • Oldandblessed thoughtful essays about life, faith, wisdom, and aging.
  • Oosterman Treats Funny and sad stories about migration, travel and suburban life.
  • Renee Johnson Writes: There is no going back behind a dark curtain of self-doubt. Following her dreams, writing, honing her craft, and engaging with other writers.
  • Retirementally Challenged Navigating through my post-work world
  • Zeebra Designs & Destinations An artist’s eyes never rests, nor does Z. Living here and there, writing, teaching, beautifying and spreading joy where ever she goes.
  • The Quiet Photographer un fotografo tranquillo, semplicemente. Practice reading Spanish while enjoying Robert’s photos

My Life With an Enigma

I’ve been Freshly Pressed!

All that jabber -archive

My Life With an Enigma. Available now!

Into War With an Empty Gun

His Red Journal; Finding My Father

Available now!

Available Now!

Available now!

Goodreads

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • Rangewriter
    • Join 4,167 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Rangewriter
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...